is an investment firm that is passionate about building businesses

Clayton Associates

Clayton Associates is the McWhorter family office.

The firm has built on its extensive operating experience and relationships to partner with entrepreneurs and help build successful businesses.

The Founders

Stuart C. McWhorter

Co-Founder & Chairman

As Co-Founder and Chairman of Clayton Associates, Stuart McWhorter has over 20 years of experience in entrepreneurship and early stage investing.

In addition, McWhorter served as the CEO of the Nashville Entrepreneur Center (EC). The EC is Nashville-based hub that helps entrepreneurs create, launch and grow scalable businesses.

Prior to Clayton Associates, Mr. McWhorter was part of the founding management team of OrthoLink Physicians Corporation where he served as Vice President of Managed Care and Vice President of Development. Prior to OrthoLink, Mr. McWhorter served in various management positions with Tenet Healthcare-owned Brookwood Medical Center in Birmingham, AL.

Mr. McWhorter has served as an adjunct professor at Belmont University teaching healthcare and entrepreneurship.

Mr. McWhorter received his Masters in Health Administration from The University of Alabama-Birmingham and B.S. in Management from Clemson University.

R. Clayton McWhorter

In 2016, our firm lost its Founding Chairman, Clayton McWhorter. He was not only our Founder; he was our friend, mentor and advocate who led by example and believed deeply in our mission.

Mr. McWhorter was the former Founder, Chairman and CEO of HealthTrust, Inc. and Chairman of Hospital Corporation of America (NYSE:HCA). Mr. McWhorter retired from HCA in 1996 as Chairman of HCA with the vision to create a firm to serve the need of investing in and advising healthcare entrepreneurs that were seeking to serve the healthcare industry. Mr. McWhorter’s wealth of experience and relationships in the industry served as an effective platform to create Clayton Associates.

HealthTrust was a success story in the Healthcare industry. Known for taking the smaller, less profitable hospitals within the HCA family of hospitals, Mr. McWhorter led a team of executives and spun-off these facilities from HCA and turned them into profitable and sustainable community based hospitals that effectively served many communities around the country. HealthTrust later merged back into HCA where Mr. McWhorter served as the Chairman. Prior to HealthTrust, Mr. McWhorter served in various executive leadership roles at HCA including its Chief Operating Officer and Vice President of Domestic Operations. Prior to his corporate role in Nashville, TN, he served as an HCA hospital administrator in various markets.

Venture Capital Fund Investments

Clayton Associates is the founding investor in three Venture Capital Funds.

Founded in 1996, FCA Venture Partners has a long history of investing in successful healthcare entrepreneurs. The team is passionate about building sustainable businesses and providing strategic value to their portfolio companies.

FCA invests $3-6M in fast growing healthcare companies making processes in the industry faster, better, and cheaper while improving the quality of care and improving the patient experience.